Editor’s note: Most of the photos featured in this article were contributed by the team behind the Mindanao Goes Solar tour, who offered to document the visits for media coverage.
The last time I went to Mindanao was when I went to see the shrimp solar farm in General Santos City. Back then, solar energy seemed to be a quiet part of business strategy. Promising, but nothing of revolutionary.
This time, I found myself in Cagayan De Oro (CDO), where the rage is ten times louder. Here, it is no longer in its experimental phase. From homes, farms, and to major establishments, CDO is slowly shifting from fossil fuel to renewable energy due to unreliable grid power and rising costs of electricity.
As of today, Mindanao remains as the least-electrified of the country’s three main island groups.
Based on data from the Department of Energy’s annual reports in 2022 and 2023, Luzon maintains an electrification rate of 97 to 99 percent, while the Visayas follows closely behind at 92 to 97 percent.
In contrast, Mindanao’s household electrification rate lags significantly, ranging from 80 to 86 percent according to assessments published by the National Electrification Administration between 2022 and late 2023.
In the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, access drops even further. A July 2023 update from NEA revealed that only 40 to 45 percent of households in the region were connected to the grid
“When it comes to energy infrastructure development, Mindanao has been marginalized in the last half century,” Mindanao Goes Solar movement project lead Philline Marie Donggay told PhilSTAR Tech.
Donggay’s organization held a three-day solar expo from June 5 to June 7, which I was invited to witness along with other media.
“Only coal power has been offered by developers for the most part, which is a dirty and expensive energy source,” she said.
The leader of this movement shared that their organization connects potential solar customers with trusted solar service suppliers through solar expos and solar exhibits. Online, they rally awareness campaigns like ‘Solar Suroy,’ ‘The Solar Week’ broadcasts and more.
But these on-the-ground efforts are no longer enough. The movement is calling for national attention; a platform to amplify what’s happening in Mindanao, and perhaps, a window into the country’s energy future.
Aside from the expo, they toured us around CDO and Bukidnon to visit establishments that have already made solar energy an integral part of their daily operations.
From pizza ovens to pediatric wards
At Demetrio’s, a cozy pizza parlor nestled in the heart of Cagayan de Oro, the ovens are gas-powered, but the future is solar.
“I see it as a practical side—like there’s no downside of having solar,” said owner Daniel Mejia, who installed a 30-kilowatt solar power system to run the restaurant.
He was given 18 months to pay off the system, but even before the term ended, he was ready to expand.
The pizza parlor’s daily consumption averages at 12 kilowatts. The rest is fed back into the grid.
“Most likely right now we’re using about 12 kilowatts, yet our power is generating 30 kilowatts. That surplus 18 offsets,” The Demetrio’s Pizza owner said.
For a business owner, the gains are immediate and tangible, not just in savings, but in stability.
“Last week, one time in the last four or five months we had a brownout. We were told in advance, so one hour we had a few burgers, it’s fine, customers understood,” he recalled.
Less than 20 minutes away, a larger, more critical operation is harnessing the sun as well, is the Madonna and Child Hospital. It is one of the city’s key medical facilities.
Engr. Gary Ardimer, the hospital’s facility engineer, estimated the project cost at around ₱3 to ₱4 million.
The hospital saves between ₱200,000 to ₱400,000 each month, thanks to its 180 kilowatt solar installation, which currently powers non-critical systems like air conditioning and lighting.
“Ang purpose lang siguro nito is to save,” he added.
And while life-saving equipment remains connected to the grid and backup generators, solar is easing the burden of rising electricity costs.
“We are planning to put more solar panels, but hindi kasya ‘yung dami, kaya hinihintay na lang namin,” he added, citing upcoming expansion plans for a six-story facility.
The system was installed in 2019 by Greenergy Solar, a local company specializing in customized packages for both residential and commercial clients.
According to Kit Jeran Macahilos, Marketing Staff at Greenergy, each project begins with a site survey to ensure compatibility and maximum efficiency.
“We want the package suitable for the customer. We survey it first. When we get the right computation, ‘yun ‘yung commendable na package sa kanila,” the marketing staff said.
“I think may difference talaga kasi sa hospital life eh. Sa business, money can generated back. But the life of a person is important.”
Greenergy also handles the long-term maintenance and monitoring through a proprietary after-sales system.
“We have an app, but only the after-sales department can access it. That’s part of the package. Very sensitive ‘yung mga solar panels natin. Isang mali lang na pag-clean, it will (be) damaged again,” Macahilos explained.
Back at Demetrio’s, Mejia is already looking ahead to the next chapter of solar innovation. He envisions the concept as a scalable franchise, one that could be deployed in any barangay, even in remote areas like Tawi-Tawi.
“We’re working on the first commercial solar-powered ice platform powered by the sun. The sun producing ice,” he said.
Yet even with the savings, resilience, and independence that solar offers, the adoption curve remains steep for many. The question of why there are not more people advocating for solar energy still lingers in the air.
“I think, number one, awareness. Number two is not everybody gets favorable terms,” Mejia said.
For now, pioneers like Mejia and institutions like Madonna and Child Hospital are quietly shaping the region’s energy future. One panel, one kilowatt, one sunny day at a time.
Different roads to the sun
In Bukidnon, the solar energy movement runs through the soil—literally.
Raymund Mirabueno, owner of Mirabueno Farm, shared that he personally installed his solar system after attending a week-long Meralco seminar in 2013 that combined classroom learning and hands-on training.
Now, solar powers nearly every aspect of life on the 21 hectare property, from irrigation to cattle fencing, coffee roasting to pool filters.
He explained that they set up solar-powered water pumps, with one solar panel directly connected to a pump located 100 meters below ground.
“‘Yung mga diesel pumps sa field, we changed that all to electric. We have to increase that so that even if we do pumping for irrigation every day, zero ‘yung energy namin.”
For him, solar is about sovereignty. Even during widespread brownouts, he noted that his system reliably powers a fan, keeps the lights on, and even supports plugging in his laptop.
Even his coffee processing operation now runs on solar-powered dryers. Also, it’s not just any coffee. In 2019, his Robusta beans from Bukidnon earned a Gourmet diploma at the Agence pour la Valorisation des Produits Agricole international contest in Milan, a rare feat for a bean often dismissed as inferior.
Meanwhile, for Toyota Cagayan de Oro, the shift was driven not by idealism, but by business logic.
“Basically, we started sa talaga amin, para makatipid,” said Nancy Uy Ramirez, Vice President of Toyota CDO.
“Pero ngayon, because we are getting to be environmentally concerned,” She added.
The dealership began using solar in 2018, standardizing installations across their Northern Mindanao network.
She explained that each of their dealerships is equipped with at least 100 kilowatt of solar power, with Toyota CDO operating nearly 262 kilowatt.
Their monthly electricity bill dropped from ₱550,000 to ₱330,000 since making the switch. But the savings could be even greater, if not for bureaucratic delays.
“Sayang talaga kasi, had the net metering been easier, mas ma-ROI tayo earlier. Right now, we’re saving 70 instead of 120 thousand,” she said.
Despite the setbacks, solar has become part of their environmental compliance.
The Toyota CDO VP shared that their shift to solar began as a cost-cutting measure, and eventually aligned with their ISO certification for Environmental Management.
“But in the truest sense, talagang pagtitipid talaga ‘yung unang motivation.”
The revolution in Mindanao
Across Mindanao, solar energy is taking shape in wildly different forms. Cost-cutting, energy security, climate awareness or simply the need to keep the lights on when the grid fails, are just some of the motivations we see from these adopters.
Yet a common thread emerges: solar, which was once just a solution, is becoming indispensable.
“Solar energy is the most accessible technology option to bring back those glory days and achieve 100% electricity access in all of the Mindanao regions,” Donggay said.
A solar-powered Mindanao, she added, is one that’s more democratic, more resilient, and less reliant on imported fuel.
“It’s a win for climate justice in the Philippines. It helps address energy marginalization in a way that is clean and avoids the further increase of greenhouse gas emissions,” she said.
While delays in net metering and policy gaps still slow the spread, the early adopters are laying down roots for something bigger.
Whether it’s catching cattle at dawn, cooling showrooms across six cities, or powering a globally awarded coffee bean roast, these trailblazers in the South are at the forefront of the movement.
Mindanao’s solar revolution isn’t waiting for permission anymore. It’s already on the move, one panel at a time.
